Design processes are often under-productive. The design process management research field addresses this lack of productivity through the design rationale and design process improvement research. Researchers in these fields attempt to improve design processes by first validating descriptive and predictive process modelling methods using industry observation and case studies, which then lay the foundation for normative research proposing new methods aimed at directly improving industry design processes. These new methods frequently depend on process communication to improve design processes.
While the design process management research field already developed methodologies for effectively communicating design processes, industry has not widely adopted these methodologies. This lack of adoption is not due to the lack of tools capable of effectively communicating design processes. Rather, the lack of adoption stems from the lack of incentive for designers to communicate processes at the instant they are designing. It is not sufficient to have the methodology and tools to effectively communicate process. The act of process communication must also require little effort; it must be efficient.
Design processes consist of organizations exchanging information that lead to digital models of a product. Communication is generally the process of exchange of information between sender and receiver to equalize information on both sides. Designers communicate processes by exchanging information that describes how professionals exchange information. While the design process management field effectively but not efficiently communicates design processes, the project information management field develops methods for efficient exchange of information, but not effective process communication. This gap between the two fields motivated both the practical and theoretical development of the Design Process Communication Methodology (DPCM). DPCM consists of elements that represent and contextualize processes and methods that describe how designers capture and use these processes by interacting with a computer. As a result of these elements and methods, DPCM can be characterized as computable, embedded, modular, personalized, scalable, shared, social, and transparent.
Industry struggles to efficiently implement design process management methodologies aimed at improving communication of design processes. Therefore, there is a need for a tool for effective and efficient design process communication. Preferably, such a tool would effectively and efficiently collaborate within projects, share processes between projects, and facilitate the understanding of processes across projects.